Samwyl Tarly

Samwyl Tarly is the first son of Lord Glendon Tarly and the heir to House Tarly, a powerful military house in the Reach that survived being on the losing side of the Blackfyre Rebellion with little loss of influence or power. Samwyl was raised at Horn Hill and taught to ride, hunt, and fight from a young age. His education was diverse and included painting, dancing, art history, reading and writing Valyrian, and the customs and politics of the Westerosi court. He did not take much to any of his studies as a boy or a young man and was often berated by his harsh teachers and his father for being lazy and unmotivated.

Samwyl is an energetic and jovial young man, whose simple charm and earnest demeanor cause him to over-step in matters of politics and society as often as they help him escape those who might scrutinize his behavior and actions. His youthful disposition and appearance belie his brutish size and strength, and despite his father's admonishment, he often stoops to make himself seem smaller and less threatening.

Samwyl is played by Don.

Appearance
Samwyl is a very tall, athletic man, standing at just over six feet and four inches. He is extremely strong and fast for his size, which amongst his friends has earned him the nickname of The Blonde Bear of Horn Hill. His skin is fair, his eyes are a bright sky blue, and his long, curly golden hair is well-kept and maintained. Though his jawline is strong, his face still has some of its youthful roundness.

Samwyl is a fashionable man, whose love for wearing extravagant robes and armor often strikes others as flamboyant or garish. He prefers the colors green, white and gold, and most of his clothing bears embroidery resembling bows, arrows, horns, and other symbols related to hunting and House Tarly.

History
Samwyl first served beside his father in the Battle of Vulture's Roost, though he remained with the reserve forces and never actually engaged directly in combat. After the battle, he traveled to Fox Hollow with his childhood friend and close companion, the young Lord Alester Oakheart. During their time together, he had a casual affair with Alyster that culminated in a tryst with both Alyster and his wife, Lady Mara Oakheart.

After the tryst, during a feast at Fox Hollow where Lord Olyver Yronwood and Lady Marzia Greenmont announced their betrothal, Samwyl was involved in a conspiracy propagated by Alester and Lord Costayne to break hospitality, interrupt the feast, and arrest Olyver for his alleged murder of Lord Gormund Peake after the Battle of Vulture's Roost. Samwyl, not fancying himself a leader, gave Alester command over the Tarly knights camped in Fox Bollow. Alester ordered the murder of four Greenmont guards outside of the feast hall, then surrounded the guests of the feast, including Olyver and a handful of the Greenmont guards, while they were eating.

During the confrontation, Alester ordered the Tarly knights to attack. In the brief skirmish that followed, Samwyl witnessed a heavily wounded and unarmored Lord Olyver single-handedly slay seven Tarly knights in the span of a few seconds. Samwyl fled the scene, wretched in the hall outside, and escaped to wait at the road for Alester's return.

Though Olyver was outnumbered, overcome, and ultimately perished from his wounds, Alester and the Tarly knights were forced to retreat and flee from Fox Hollow. Samwyl traveled with Mara and Alester to Highgarden, where he remained silent for days on end. He eventually broke that silence during his own trial at Highgarden, giving an honest account of what he witnessed during the massacre at Fox Hollow.

At the trial's conclusion, Samwyl was not found culpable or guilty for the massacre at Fox Hollow.

The Bachelor Heir
After Alester was sentenced in 199 AC to be exiled to the dungeons of Red Keep in King's Landing for ten years, Samwyl returned to Horn Hill. The scandal in Fox Hollow caused his arranged marriage with Lady Rowan to be disavowed, and Samwyl returned to being a bachelor. After a fierce argument with his father, Samwyl traveled to Old Town to search for Symon Greenmont, finding him returned to his studies as a Maester. Samwyl told Symon of Mara's miscarriage and informed him of what occurred at Fox Hollow. In exchange for his promise not to reveal Symon's location to anyone but Mara herself, Symon wrote several letters that Samwyl made sure to deliver by raven: one to Mara in Old Oak and one to Marzia in Fox Hollow.

After Mara's year of mourning was complete, Samwyl traveled to Old Oak to visit her, bringing her news of her brother Symon, and sharing with her Symon's growth and maturity. Seeing Mara unhappy and distraught after losing her child and Alester's imprisonment, Samwyl convinced her to travel with him up and down the west coast of the continent. Their travels turned into drunken escapades from Casterly Rock to the Arbor. During the trip, Samwyl and Mara became very close friends, sharing their dreams of the future, opening up about their beliefs and fears, and shirking their responsibilities to their family in exchange for freedom, adventure, and revelry. When their ship was attacked by pirates from the Iron Islands, Mara saved Samwyl's life by knocking a raider out with a frying pan. Afterwards, Samwyl vowed to take his studies and training more seriously as a knight.

The Battle of the Brimstone
In the years after his travels with Mara Oakheart, Samwyl earnestly pursued studies in riding, hunting, swordsmanship, and warfare -- though he continued to avoid courtly politics and other, more intellectual, studies. He continued to visit Mara, at least once each year, oftentimes meeting her somewhere between Horn Hill and Old Oak. Their friendship sparked many rumors at court of their having a wild affair, and neither of them did much to quell those rumors. During their time together, their talks began to turn towards politics and how they wish they could change Westeros, throw off its outdated customs, and bring true peace to the Reach.

In 204 AC, Samwyl marched with his father into Dorne, with a host that included soldiers from houses Dondarrion, Selmy, Swann and Merryweather, along with several Reacher mercenary companies. The host invaded Dorne in pursuit of rebels and bandits. This march was Samwyl's first time ever fighting in a true battle, and his first time ever killing another man. Samwyl fought well and the host seemed unstoppable, until it reached the edge of the Brimstone River. There, in the height of summer in the Dornish desert, many Reacher soldiers died of stroke, dehydration, starvation, and disease. By the time they reached the river, a small Dornish host and cavalry led by houses Uller and Quorgyle engaged with the Reachers, resulting in a massacre now known as the Battle of the Brimstone. Though the Marcher Lords fought with determination, the Dornishmen's sand steeds and understanding of the harsh terrain caused the Reachers to be routed. During the long retreat out of Dorne, Samwyl's allies were continuously hunted and harried by an ever-dwindling House Uller skirmishing party.

The Battle of the Brimstone harrowed Samwyl. He watched his comrades' skin melt to their armor in the Dornish heat and witnessed killing on a massive scale up-close. He cut down many Dornishmen himself during the campaign, and afterward admitted openly that those men he slew were as honorable as he is, and did not deserve to die. After recovering at Horn Hill, Samwyl left to visit Symon Greenmont at Oldtown. There, he broke down about the pressures of fighting, leading men, and being groomed to be Lord of House Tarly. Symon advised Samwyl that knighthood and the courts are a lie, and that only by a person's actions may he be judged.

The Tournament at Fox Hollow
Samwyl and Symon traveled from Oldtown to meet with Mara Oakheart on the road. Together, along with a forward company of Tarly soldiers, the trio traveled to Fox Hollow to accept an invitation from Marzia Greenmont to attend a grand feast, ball, and tournament. Despite his involvement in the massacre at Fox Hollow, and persisting rumors about his affair with Mara Oakheart, Samwyl arrived at the tourney grounds and announced his intentions to make peace with House Greenmont and to participate in the tournament.

Quotes
"I cannot change what has passed. I cannot make my father a gentler man, or make Jon Oakheart not hate the Dornish people. I cannot clean the blood on my hands. All that I can do, now and forever, is swear that I will never abandon you, and I will strive to be a better man with each day that passes."

"While I still breathe, you will never be alone."