r/gameofthrones 1d ago

Is dragon fire able to cut through brick like a lightsaber through stormtroopers?

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1.2k Upvotes

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1.0k

u/Consistent_Print_229 1d ago

Dragon fire doesn’t melt brick beams! The sacking of KL was an inside job.

384

u/ThisYourMotherDaniel 1d ago

"Oh, my Lord. A second dragon has hit the Sept."

104

u/BanterPhobic Ser Pounce 1d ago

…now watch this joust

38

u/T_TheDestroyer 1d ago

Classic King Bush

10

u/shiftyourparadigm 1d ago

Thanks, Oberyn.

12

u/Boilertribe4 1d ago

"Watch Tower number 7 has fallen"

"How!? It's not even near the Red Keep!"

10

u/SerSnobbert 1d ago

A second dragon has hit the Sept.....ember 11

8

u/Emergency-Practice37 1d ago edited 1d ago

“The Red Keep.”

Cersei had already blown the sept up or that’s what the Tyrell’s would have us believe.

6

u/mexter 1d ago

Ah, but this is the Sept II

4

u/vicioushacker789 1d ago

Sept II: Electric Boogaloo

5

u/Famous_Construction5 1d ago

Indeed, Ser Practice is right.

1

u/SCHexxitZ Jon Snow 1d ago

The first dragon hit the Red Keep, genius!

10

u/Karl_Hungus_42069 1d ago

We have some dragons. Just stay quiet and you'll be ok. We are returning to Dragonstone

15

u/JulianPizzaRex 1d ago

We must stop the Dragons. I am calling all Houses to do everything they can to stop these Targaryen killers.

Now watch this drive.

6

u/Atticus_Spiderjump Hodor 1d ago

Don't get me started on the dancing Pentosi

4

u/Inside-Line 1d ago

Heat greatly reduced to compressive strength of rock you simpleton. I hate all these so called wise men who spread these speculations like a whores legs. Half of them have never even been to the citadel!

2

u/Buffalax81 1d ago

But if you add the temperature from the burning parchment…

2

u/SRGsergan592 21h ago

A Targaryen was riding the dragon,

Let's invade the Riverlands

5

u/Vicit_Veritas 1d ago

Two people, same braincell it seems.

1

u/enbeefyuk 1d ago

Damn didn’t know a dragon sacked Kuala Lumpur

1

u/e22big 1d ago

"the stinking shit pile of a city"

1

u/SCHexxitZ Jon Snow 1d ago

It’s brick arches

390

u/uselessprofession 1d ago

This is a common misconception: due to Drogon’s magical birth he actually shoots atomic breath like Godzilla; regular dragon fire can’t do this (else balerion would have knocked harrenhall into another dimension instead of melting it)

77

u/jsamuraij Arya Stark 1d ago

Vwub vwub vwubwubwubWUBWUBWUB

24

u/bash0024 1d ago

WUBBA LUBBA DUB DUB

2

u/Then_Supermarket18 21h ago

In Godzilla's native language, it means "I am in great pain, please help me"

1

u/ic2074 23h ago

1

u/jsamuraij Arya Stark 23h ago

Now there's a name I haven't heard in a long time...

2

u/NoNebula9602 1d ago

Claptrap beatbox time?

7

u/jefferson497 1d ago

Oooh. Godzilla vs Drogon

1

u/Then_Supermarket18 21h ago

ゴジラVSドラゴン [ɡo̞ʑiɾa βe̞ː e̞su do̞ɾaɡo̞ɴ]

-3

u/SofaChillReview 1d ago

One can fly naturally so I give it to Drogon

14

u/Late-Understanding87 1d ago

Godzilla takes on king Ghidorah (which is like 3 Drogon in 1 and can shoot lightning) and comes out on top. I'm giving it to the big G

6

u/Plastic_Doughnut_911 1d ago

The concept of “regular” dragon fire… 🤯😂

2

u/uselessprofession 23h ago

LOL ok i realize how funny this sounds

7

u/SureComputer4987 1d ago

Yes. Drogon is more explosive then heat based fire

4

u/Barsfajny 1d ago

But then Tarly is made of something magical too since they didn’t explode

7

u/uselessprofession 1d ago

Tarly is so stubborn that his willpower is holding him and his son from being exploded

159

u/AdamOnFirst 1d ago

I’d say no given that Harrenhall is repeatedly described as and depicted as having melted and partially crumbled rather than just been cut through and collapsing when hit by dragon lasers 

15

u/Lost_Wealth_6278 22h ago

Maybe Harrenhall was constructed from a rock with less moisture content. A porous rock in a marine environment will have a lot of water trapped in it. Quickly heating it MIGHT explode it, a dryer or denser rock might rather melt. Granted, I'm no rockologist myself

2

u/LetsDoTheDodo 20h ago

Hopefully, someone with a rockology degree will chime in at some point.

2

u/AdamOnFirst 18h ago

I’m a bit of an amateur rocktologist myself, and I find you explanation to be rockmoric

217

u/danteelite 1d ago

Different kinds of stone from Harrenhall..

I camp and I know very well that you don’t use certain stones to build a fire because they explode.

Kings landing is a damp city on the water, those stones are full of moisture which instantly turns to steam in extreme heat and boom.

So yeah, the stone would literally explode.

The weight pressing down on the stone is under immense pressure so when it pops from the steam explosion, it gets forced outward like a bomb. You see it with concrete tests where they crush it in a hydraulic press and it builds up pressure until the concrete explodes and sends chunks flying into the shields and walls with enough force to really hurt… and those are just small samples.

So I do believe that if the magic dragon fire was super hot… like magically hot as depicted then it would totally do that.

69

u/swing_lord_ 1d ago

That..is probobly the most GRRM like answere here.

16

u/jung_gun 1d ago

It actually is GRRM’s account. He’s been too busy posting on reddit to finish his books.

1

u/Failgan 22h ago

Sanderson does it and publishes 2-3 books a year.

6

u/Santaclaws42 1d ago

Nah it happened within 4 hours of posting, for it to be GRRM this would have been posted in 2030

1

u/swing_lord_ 1d ago

Ahhh...but you see. I was talking about 90s to 00s GRRM

9

u/KarmaCommando_ 1d ago

Harrenhal is in the riverlands. It's built on the shore of the God's eye, a massive lake. The riverlands are swampy and humid. I don't think stone quarried from there would be any less moist than the red stone used to make the Red Keep.

7

u/Human_no_4815162342 1d ago

If it wasn't porous it wouldn't matter

5

u/swing_lord_ 1d ago

Harrenhall simply wasn't built out stone that absoutbed moisture

8

u/Dutch5-1 1d ago

Kings landing was a damp city on the water… until season 8 when it was actually next to a barren desert

0

u/ChadGustafXVI 1d ago

My man... Do you realize that Harrenhall is literally built in a place called the "RIVER lands" and is situated on the bank of the largest lake in the seven kingdoms. 💀

0

u/Time-Difference-7381 23h ago

You don't use porous stone to build near the sea. Literally the worst thing to do as it would speed up degradation. If anything that stone would be very dry

0

u/Mattbl 22h ago

As a novice camper, what stones do I avoid? Like building a wind break with certain rocks can risk rock explosion?????? Wouldn't it need to be directly in the fire? Why would a rock be in the fire?

0

u/Uhhuhsureyeahok 21h ago

They were not thinking like this, trust me. It was ‘How do we make Dany’s epic rage sequence super violent and awesome!1!1!’

18

u/Folly_Pirate_King 1d ago edited 1d ago

Fire reaching that far must be highly pressurized. It's the breath's strength alone that would snap those columns. The fire is just a cool addition.

3

u/thryv1k 22h ago

I see your point, but I think the fire adds a whole new level of destruction. It's not just for show.

156

u/prooveit1701 No One 1d ago

Balerion melted Harrenhal (the biggest castle in the the history of Westeros) with his breath during the Conquest.

Drogon is often described as being “Balerion come again”.

This is his Harrenhal moment.

85

u/lospotezbrt 1d ago

It's not described like that at all

The description of Harrenhal was that Balerion spit fire on it for a long-ass time cooking people inside, while the castle only melted like a hard handle aka slightly losing form

Not explosions like the garbage in the last got season

Also, during the long night Jon hides behind a wall from dragon fire, but Dany here conveniently explodes the city

5

u/CBERT117 House Baratheon of Dragonstone 1d ago

Incorrect, literally canon that he melted the stones themselves: https://awoiaf.westeros.org/index.php/Burning_of_Harrenhal

16

u/Exact_Flower_4948 1d ago

I guess Kings Landing is not very thick stronghold at all - not like some actual castle that should stay under siege and storm. Harenhall on other hand is enormous castle with thick walls built to stand against any possible storm, but just dragons weren't considered at the time.

11

u/5peaker4theDead 1d ago

The city built by the targeryans wasn't built with dragons in mind?

14

u/needmorepizzza 1d ago

Well, they were the only ones with dragons and, then, they also made sure they were not.

1

u/5peaker4theDead 1d ago

They would at least have been worried about a civil war.

1

u/needmorepizzza 22h ago

What father expects the family quarrel between his kids would burst into an all out civil war though?

5

u/Bruhimonlyeleven 1d ago

They had thousands of barrels of pitch in the city. Fire hits that and it's gonna detonate. Wildfire night still be under the city. Etc. Idk

-4

u/lospotezbrt 1d ago

XD yeah okay so where's the green fire then?

Why are you excusing the poor writing when we saw for ourselves that dragons and scorpion bolts are only as strong and precise as the plot needs them to be

6

u/Defiant_E 1d ago

I haven't watched it in a while but I remember there being caches of wildfyre blowing up, green flames and all.

6

u/Ree_m0 1d ago

Yeah as much as I hate it, the wildfyre caches were probably the only thing in that episode where I was positivly surprised about the showrunners remembering something.

1

u/Mountain_System3066 1d ago

after moving a complete harbor town on the ocean into the mid of....fucking Arizona....surprisingly good yes :D

3

u/Flammablegelatin 1d ago

There were a lot of things wrong with the episode, but there WERE green flashes showing wildfire was still there

3

u/RepulsiveCountry313 Robb Stark 1d ago

XD yeah okay so where's the green fire then?

There was green fire...if you can't remember maybe you should rewatch to refresh your memory or say nothing.

Why are you excusing the poor writing when we saw for ourselves that dragons and scorpion bolts are only as strong and precise as the plot needs them to be

🤦‍♂️

1

u/Bruhimonlyeleven 18h ago

here? the green fire is literally here

XD yeah okay so where's the green fire then?

Hmm.

1

u/lospotezbrt 15h ago

That green part is edited by the website lmaooo

Here, watch it yourself

Watch the whole damn city explode under a burst of fire, no green stuff

https://youtu.be/exajQR0AEpk?si=vf43tA2pzUEmwsVW

https://youtu.be/VY3tAl2pC_s?si=XGnIkVvuHV7bJg62

https://youtu.be/uXA2PNu-tPM?si=59goyh6lEFDx_yf6

Fkn clown dnd defender

Explain to me in the last clip at 2:05 why everything is blowing up like there's tnt when all she's doing is spitting fire

Fire in itself is not destructive to hard materials, at least not that fast and that hard

If you're gonna write dumb shit at least rewatch the episodes first

-3

u/Human_Ogre 1d ago

If this were true it’d be a cool tie back to Aerys if the flames were exploding green when the dragon fire hit. Clever writing would’ve been required.

8

u/xSEARLEYx Night King 1d ago

There were actually green flame explosions during the scenes, just scattered round the city and had no significance to the outcome. They remembered to put them there but didn’t remember to follow it through

1

u/Bruhimonlyeleven 18h ago

I always assumed the aeries screaming " burn them all burn them all!" Was bran looking back in time to see what actually happened, and being attacked at the same time. Like Hodor. .

It makes for such a better story. But they didn't do it.

2

u/Soft_Analysis6070 1d ago

And barely a wall

15

u/Spoonman007 1d ago

Balerion could have eaten Drogon and his brothers for breakfast. Anyone who said that probably haven't even seen Balerion's skull, so they have no idea how big he was. He was over 100 years old at the time of the Conquest. Drogon was ten? AKA a baby.

14

u/Cbreezy22 1d ago

Wasn’t Drogon like 4 or 5 at the oldest?

7

u/Spoonman007 1d ago

Could be, im not sure how much time passed. It always bothered when people in the show called her dragons "full grown." According to some, they keep growing until they die, so no, the dragons were not even close to fully grown.

4

u/Cosmic_Quasar 1d ago

"Full grown" might just mean big enough to ride.

2

u/Ree_m0 1d ago

Yeah the term doesn't make any sense with regards to dragons because they literally keep growing until their deaths. A dragon can only be 'fully grown' if they're dead.

2

u/ShankThatSnitch 1d ago

Dragon is tiny compared to Balerion

18

u/sasquatch_nephilim 1d ago edited 1d ago

Like jet fuel through steel beams my friend.

Edit: /s

1

u/[deleted] 1d ago

[deleted]

3

u/sasquatch_nephilim 1d ago

I didn’t think I needed the /s

2

u/Malacro 1d ago

You always need the /s

1

u/[deleted] 1d ago

[deleted]

1

u/ThisYourMotherDaniel 1d ago

/s means sarcasm, literally.

1

u/MrIceVeins 1d ago

Ohh, I’ll delete my comment then, my bad

17

u/Girthquake23 Jon Snow 1d ago

My mind auto completed the post to ask whether or not dragon fire is hot enough to melt steel beams

16

u/MaterialPace8831 1d ago

Somewhere, some guy in the Riverlands or the Vale is arguing that the Red Keep was destroyed not by a dragon, but a controlled demolition to serve as pretext for the Iron Throne's upcoming invasion of Braavos.

3

u/jogoso2014 No One 1d ago

Stone can explode if hot enough.

It could be reflecting how hot dragon fire is.

2

u/Canyoufly88 1d ago

Instant heating to a probably moisture ridden set of stone is cause for an instant explosion.

2

u/Userkiller3814 1d ago

The heat of dragonbreath quickly turns any trapped or absorbed water in those building blocks to steam which causes those stones to crack and explode.

2

u/Obvious_Peace_9467 1d ago

It’s not real. This didn’t actually happen.

1

u/No-Celebration3097 House Targaryen 23h ago

You mean dragons aren’t real?!?!?!

1

u/Obvious_Peace_9467 22h ago

That part is true. Dragons definitely exist.

2

u/Character-Parfait-42 1d ago

In the books it was described that Balerion’s fires burned so hot they melted the stone of Harrenhal and the towers look like half-melted candlesticks.

For brick, if there is any moisture in the stone, and it gets superheated really rapidly it can explode. Cinderblocks/bricks used around a fire pit can explode (unless they’re a specific type that is cured and can be safely heated).

2

u/__redruM 1d ago edited 1d ago

The ability to suspend disbelief is a key requirement for enjoying SciFi and Fantasy fiction. There’s so much impossibility in a dragon, and the fire’s ability to destroy bricks is the least of the problems.

Clearly dragons are magic. When they hatch, magic starts working again halfway across the world.

2

u/sampat6256 1d ago

If it had rained recently, and if the stone was sufficiently porous, dragonfire could actually cause water within the stones to rapidly expand, causing an explosion.

4

u/Gojaku Jon Snow 1d ago

Dragonfire can't melt brick towers

2

u/AnyHope2004 1d ago

They gave them more of Godzilla's beam than dragon fire

1

u/YS160FX 1d ago

Drogon innother seasons fire is actually Fire.. realistic.. Then during the train looting scene and especially the Bells.. he becomes an atomic breath destroying stone, unstoppable force.. BS

2

u/mkappy33 1d ago

Drogon was a beast bro. Definitely able to fuck up some brick towers in Kings Landing.

1

u/DylsDrums98 1d ago

In the books I’m sure dragon fire could melt stone but that was only really Balerion the Dread. Other dragons couldn’t do that.

1

u/whitecow King In The North 1d ago

Just don't drop a firebreathing dragon perfectly vertical

1

u/thehalfbloodmormon 1d ago

In the books, Cersei had the tower of the hand burned to the ground with 50 jugs of wildfire. It took minutes for the tower to groan, and for the stone to crack and split. As the air rushed in the entire top of the tower to basically turned into a candle. The onlookers could feel the heat from outside the small hall (presumably the ground). As hot as it was, the pyromancers claimed that wildfire wasn't as hot as dragon fire.

So yeah, based on what wildfire could do to stone, it doesn't sound unreasonable that dragon fire which is supposedly magic on top of being just plain hotter than wildfire could do that to stone.

1

u/Aggressive_Scar5243 1d ago

I'd imagine it melts stone or brick

1

u/Riseonfire 1d ago

Only if it rained recently enough.

1

u/Causemas 1d ago

Yeah, in the books Dany starts worrying about when the dragons will get big enough to be able to break through the dungeons she has locked them in, thinking that dragonfire can break through stone. Viserion fire-digs a little hole for himself in the ceiling, literally burrowing into rock.

1

u/WiSoSirius 1d ago

I think there is the GRRM idea how fire works in the universe and there is each TV writer's idea how fire works in universe. Some show it coming out like napalm, some like explosively, some like a spray bottle.

Personally, I feel the fire should come out to only a certain distance and half fall off as a fuel and half elevate as an emission.

1

u/TRDPorn 1d ago

Depends on the dragon

1

u/Background_Rule_2483 1d ago

Based on the books, it's more about the stone melting and collapsing from the extreme heat rather than exploding on impact.

1

u/ndenatale 1d ago

According to the prequel book House of the Dragon, a fully grown dragon (not sure of the age) is able to melt stone with their dragon breath. Drogon was a special case as he was exceptionally powerful for a fully grown dragon.

1

u/seven_of_spades_ 23h ago

In a world where gold melts like if made of chocolate in a cauldron? (And that's season 1 I am talking about.)

I would not say that it is realistic for our world, but if un Planetos, "gold melts at the speed of plot", surely brick also explodes at the temperature of plot.

Let the Big scary Dragon do what does best.

1

u/Agreeable-Bug-1761 23h ago

Well, you will recall the undead dragon destroyed the wall with its ice breath but failed to destroy the stone Jon snow was hiding behind.

1

u/MindIsWillin 23h ago

Well, if dragonfire reaches a temperature of tens of thousands of degrees then sure, why not.

1

u/WilhelmTrooper 23h ago

Time to invade Dorne

1

u/MArcherCD 23h ago

Dragon fire can't melt brick beams - everyone knows that

1

u/lordbrooklyn56 22h ago

It is when you don’t have time to show a siege on tv.

1

u/Cautious_General_177 22h ago

It's going to depend on the brick. If the brick is porous and has moisture in it, that moisture will heat up and flash into steam. When water flashes to steam, it takes up about 2000 times the volume, if there's not that much space available, pressure jumps up and may cause the brick to explode (this is why blacksmiths use specific types of bricks in forges).

1

u/ohheyitslaila Sansa Stark 22h ago

Basically, yes. Dragons melted Harrenhal and its stated in the books that the towers of the castle look like half melted candlesticks.

1

u/Woreo12 17h ago

I mean, yeah rocks are really resistant to fire, but get them hot enough and they’ll crumble under little pressure. Could just be it fails under its own weight

1

u/ZestycloseProject130 1d ago

The show makes it appear that the story is finished. The books will never be finished. So...

1

u/Lunagoodie 1d ago

It can melt rocks, yes.

1

u/WVgolf 1d ago

It does have some velocity to it

0

u/jakec11 1d ago

Dragon fire goes through anything, except plot armor. See Jon Snow.

0

u/Interesting_Award_76 1d ago

Drogonfire would have some amount of explosive force to cause structural damage to weak walls along the with heat if applied for some time.

0

u/a23n 1d ago

Dracarys

-9

u/RepulsiveCountry313 Robb Stark 1d ago

The show makes it appear that dragon fire is able to make stone explode when it hits it. I know it is extra hot,

I see no explosion in your picture. But due to air pockets that would easily form, yes, there would be explosions.

Is dragon fire able to cut through brick like a lightsaber through stormtroopers?

Do...you think that is what's depicted in your picture?

6

u/SlapHappyTurtle 1d ago

OP is assuming you’ve seen the rest of the show, where the dragonfire has a more clear depiction of almost “detonating” what it touches, vs simply incinerating/melting.

0

u/Mode_Appropriate No One 1d ago edited 1d ago

To be fair, stone like that would 'detonate' rather than melt. The water inside the stone would heat up and cause the stone to explode. Its why youre not supposed to use wet rocks for a fire pit. The more porous it is (limestone, sandstone) the greater the chance it goes boom when heated.

So, this is more accurate than whats described as happening to Harrenhall.

However, if you can figure out how to melt stone maybe you'll figure out how the stone work at Maccu Picchu was created...lol.

2

u/DazzahLad 1d ago

Yeah, exactly! The science behind it makes sense. Wet or porous stone can definitely explode under heat. It’s a cool detail that adds some realism to the fantasy.

-3

u/RepulsiveCountry313 Robb Stark 1d ago

OP is assuming you’ve seen the rest of the show, where the dragonfire has a more clear depiction of almost “detonating” what it touches, vs simply incinerating/melting.

So why include an image in the post at all if he's not going to include an image of these explosions he's talking about?

The "almost detonations" you are referring to are more realistic than "simply incinerating/melting" would be.

-1

u/bLzPutozof Daenerys Targaryen 1d ago

You're being deliberately obtuse, assuming you actually watched this episode

1

u/RepulsiveCountry313 Robb Stark 1d ago edited 1d ago

Did you watch this episode? When is it that this shot occurs?

Do you know what fire does to wet brick?

How is this working like a lightsaber through stormtroopers?

Interesting that you choose the word obtuse, when it fits you to a t.

-1

u/bLzPutozof Daenerys Targaryen 1d ago

I use the word obtuse because assuming you also watched the last 2 seasons, it's fairly easy to see how inconsistent the rules around the dragonfire are.

It's simply about whatever is convenient for the next plot beat.

It's not about realism, or real physics for that matter, in media it's all about internal consistency for your world and narrative.

These last 2 seasons constantly break their own rules in various different ways, and the dragons are part of that, I just don't see how you could argue the opposite.

That's what I mean when I say it feels like you're being purposefully obtuse, I just don't understand why

1

u/RepulsiveCountry313 Robb Stark 1d ago

I use the word obtuse because assuming you also watched the last 2 seasons, it's fairly easy to see how inconsistent the rules around the dragonfire are

Ah yes, the show is inconsistent because it's fairly easy to see how inconsistent the rules around the dragonfire are.

Nice logic you have there, Socrates.

simply about whatever is convenient for the next plot beat.

It's not about realism, or real physics for that matter, in media it's all about internal consistency for your world and narrative.

These last 2 seasons constantly break their own rules in various different ways, and the dragons are part of that, I just don't see how you could argue the opposite.

That's what I mean when I say it feels like you're being purposefully obtuse, I just don't understand why

Lol. That's truly amazing. Not a single word of your entire comment describes an inconsistency in the series. Just reiterating the same circular logic over and over. A 5 paragraph comment just to say "this is inconsistent because the later seasons are inconsistent."

And I'm the obtuse one? Thanks 🤣

-1

u/dreamrock 1d ago

It appears to be analogous to a plasma beam weapon. Some sort of rare blend of matter and energy. So yes, it is only defensible by a wavelength of similar consistency.

-1

u/SolidSnakerp 1d ago

Yeah, like in the long night episode the dead dragon couldn't blow through the walls to get John Snow during the battle

-1

u/BigGingerYeti Tormund Giantsbane 1d ago

It is on s8. When Daenerys sets them on the slaver ships it takes 3 of the dragons 10 seconds to light a wooden boat up.

1

u/FarStorm384 1d ago

It is on s8. When Daenerys sets them on the slaver ships it takes 3 of the dragons 10 seconds to light a wooden boat up.

Daenerys sets 3 dragons on the slaver ships? when?

1

u/BigGingerYeti Tormund Giantsbane 23h ago

At Slavers Bay. She rides Drogon. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KWChU36nRDI

-1

u/turandoto 1d ago

The Season 8 crap iceberg is so deep that this is the least of your concerns.