A/N:
AO Black, all discoveries are based on another. Steel couldn't have been developed without the discovery of iron working, which in this story is based upon the Rhoynish/Andal iron working, once again the Stark's importance is exaggerated cause this is in the perspective of the North. The Starks had no real influence other than discovering how to forge steel. As for you point against the dragons, you have what are essentially more maneuverable scorpion bolt shots, in the cold Northern climate, with not enough game to feed them all. These are presumably, almost the worst conditions for a dragon. Could the Valyrians raze them in a one on one fight? Of course, but not while fighting the Ghiscari, and the Rhoynish.
Critas, in the background they are trying to, how successful their attempts are i can't say.
ajjr12, seeing as though the Starks appear to hate the Gardeners, I don't know how viable a marriage is.
To all the people that mention the bottle issue, you are right of course, I forgot to change that from back when I didn't know this fact.
King Beren Stark sat upon the Winter Throne when a Green Ranger burst into the Great Hall. One could tell their station and rank by his cloak and weapon, it was in the color of deep emerald green with a clasp in the shape of an direwolf carrying a longbow made of pure white wood, Weirwood.
He knelt in front of the throne and said, "Your grace, we have spotted around 30 ships. Our intelligence suggest it is the Dragonlords of House Targaryen, House Belaerys, and House Veltigar. They have 10 dragons with them."
Alarmed King Beren quickly asked "Where do they seem to be sailing to?"
"White Harbor, your grace."
"I want you to gather most, if not all, Grey and Green Rangers and ride to White Harbour. Let the White Rangers, Rangers and the Ranger's apprentice take over the patrols." King Beren then turned to his son Prince Eddard, who sat upon the Crowned Prince's Weirwood throne, and said "Ned, I need you to take 5000 men, 50 trained Giants archers, and 30 mammoths to White Harbor and greet these Dragonlords. If they are here for a friendly visit, send me a message within the moon, but if you fail to do so then I shall march the Northern Army."
"I shall leave at first light, father." said the Crowned Prince Eddard as he got up to prepare for the journey.
King Beren turned to the messenger and said "Write a message to all of the Highmagnars and Magnars directly under House Stark. Tell them to prepare the army and be prepared to march to Winterfell if need be. Inform them of the Valyrians."
Dragonlord Belaerys with Dragonlord Veltigar and Dragonlord Targaryen stood atop their relatively small ship, Sea Dragon, watching White Harbor come into their view. Dragonlord Belaerys saw White Harbor and was surprised at its beauty. It wasn't as awe inspiring as Valyria, which had skyreaching open towers made from fused rock with dragons often doting the skies, but White Harbour had a more tranquil beauty. That wasn't saying that New Castle, the keep of House Manderly wasn't impressive. It had grand whitle walls with impressive towers and he could feel it had rudimentary wards of protection on it. This surprised the Dragonlords, as they had believed wards were to be a Valyrian creation, which was jealously guarded. These wards, however, merely amplified the strength of its walls, preventing decay and was more subtle than their wards.
House Belaerys was nowhere near the most powerful of the forty Dragonlord Houses of Valyria, ranking perhaps in the top half. They did not have as many dragons as House Veltigar, who were rumored to have around 50 or more mature dragons, while his house only had 15. But what they lacked in dragons and numbers, they made it up by being the most gifted house in the area of magic. Their ability and connection to magic was one of the best. House Belaerys has already produced three great fire sage and House Belaerys made the first Valyrian Steel blade. Although ironically, Valyrian Steel did not require any magic at all. It only required the magic of dragon fire. They were beaten by the magical wardic power of House Vicarion, however, this was only due to their willingness to sacrifice thousands and thousands of lives to beat House Belaerys. He looked up to see a huge ship being escorted by ten other large ships.
Atop the ship stood a tall man with broad shoulders who asked in a language, presumably the First Tongue "What are the Valyrian Dragonlords doing this far north?"
The man after seeing blank and confused face of the Dragonlords, the man switched to the Common Tongue and asked the question again. They were able to understand as the Common Tongue remained in Essos, even after the Valyrians captured and chased off many Andals.
Dragonlord Veltigar said "We are not here to invade the North. We merely wanted to see the North and see if the rumors were true. You have my word."
"Very well, I am the Crown Prince Eddard Stark of House Stark. May I ask for yours?"
"I am Archon Dragonlord Veltigar and the two men besides me are Dragonlord Belaerys and Dragonlord Targaryen. We just wish to visit Winterfell and Wintercity."
"I was instructed by my father to lead you and your companions to Winterfell. I hope you don't mind the Green Rangers and the Giants that will be escorting us. They are to make sure that your dragons don't wander off, kill our livestock, and burn our men. They will be put down should they attempt an attack."
"That is perfectly acceptable."
Excerpt from the personal journal of Dragonlord Aerys Baelarys:
So began our journey to the North. While the journey was long, far longer than what it would have taken to fly, we didn't want to threaten the Northern Magnars. While Archon Dragonlord Veltigar and Dragonlord Targaryen decided to stay distant from our new host, I made friends with the Crown Prince Eddard. He was very stark and blunt, very fitting I suppose. However, he was also very honorable and kind. One could instantly tell he loved the Kingdom of the North and I could see why. Even with the population growth of the North, their Kingdom was currently the biggest in the world and there were still lots of empty and unclaimed land. The cold air was very clear and cut through your lungs, feeling incredibly fresh unlike the stuffy humid lands of Valyria.
The direwolf companion of Prince Eddard was one of the most majestic creatures I have ever had the pleasure of seeing. He was informed that his name was Winter. Winter was a pale white wolf with blue eyes. He was the size of a small horse or pony. Prince Eddard told me of the story of Queen Kyra "the Huntress", who found the direwolves in the lands beyond the Wall in the Land of Always Winter.
When I saw Winterfell and Wintercity I was in awe. It was as impressive as the castle and buildings of Valyria. What was more impressive was the fact that they had built most of it without the help of magic. He could of course sense the magic within the stone, but it wasn't as overwhelming as his keep in Valyria. Magic was strong around and Winterfell could probably even resist dragonfire for a bit. It was far more powerful than the rudimentary wards on New Castle. Magic was interwoven within the material, instead of coated like it was in Valyria. This interwoven nature of the magic, made it feel far more natural, less off putting, and more welcoming.
What was strange however was the amount of magic woven in the material. The amount of magic that was flowing through the stone should have destroyed the material, yet the walls and keeps of Winterfell and Wintercity held strong. This was part of the reason why the Valyrians chose to "coat" their walls instead of weaving it through, as no material could survive the amount of magic that coats the walls of Valyria.
Wintercity was also a very impressive sight. With a population of 40,000, one could see Giants, men, and short little men, who I assumed was the Children of the Forest, mingling with each other. The city was patrolled by men wearing a grey cloak. Ned told me that they were the Grey Cloak City Guard, who guarded Wintercity and Winterfell. He explained that there were practically no crimes committed within the city borders, because they were able to warg into animals and as soon as a crime was committed, and locate the criminal's location and capture them.
The city was organized four districts. Ned explained to me that this way, should they hold any tourneys or major events, it made containing them and minimising damage easier because they were all in the Inns/visitation quarter. Surprisingly there were no smell of shit and sweat, like there was in Oldtown, but a rather pleasant spell of the forest and wood smoke.
The inner yard had the Grey Cloaks training hard. They all looked to be decent swordsmen and archers. Nothing to scoff at but not amazing. Their leaders seemed to be more impressive and had a very dangerous glint in their eyes as they watched our party.
When they entered the Throne room, I saw King Beren Stark sat upon an impressive throne of Ice, which I was later informed to be known as Stygian Ice. Upon his brow was the famous crown of swords, which was reforged with Wintersteel and with the crown of Winteriron being given to the Crowned Prince to wear at the age of fifteen. He looked as regal and kingly as any Valyrian and our party could all feel the wave of magic rolling off of the throne itself.
The throne was a strange piece of magical artifact. It was an anomaly. Magic was both woven through and around the throne, with a high intense amounts of sacrificial magic lacing through the object, enough for the throne to have cracked and blown apart a hundred times over. However, it still remained and seemed to amplify the King's magic. The Throne was clearly connected to the Stark bloodline and amplified their positive traits. It had other capabilities, however, due to the interwoven layered nature of its magic, it was impossible to tell its other more hidden functions. The only way to learn its other effects, would be to sit upon the throne or break apart the wards, which would require immense magical power, and most likely the sacrifice of more than five thousand slaves. Perhaps it is the throne, which allows the walls to contain more magic than it should be capable of.
All three Dragonlords bowed their heads in respect and King Beren asked "Why are the Dragonlords of Valyria here?"
"We wished to visit the powerhouse of Westeros." replied Dragonlord Targaryen.
"Please, I wish not to play this game. Tell me the true reason of your visit."
"Ah the famous Stark bluntness. Very well, we wished to start up trade between the North and Valyria, as well as ask you not to think of attacking Valyria. Transporting your Giants, mammoths, and men will be logistic hell for you, not to mention the supplies. It will be the same case for us." replied Dragonlord Veltigar.
"So a non-aggression pact."
"In short, yes. Although the trade is another important factor."
"Very well, but I have a few demands. First, not a single one of my people: Giant, man or Children of the Forest, will be taken by your slavers. I understand that Valyria works though slaves, the North does not. Should I hear one of my people being taken, I will take my revenge. Winter will come for the enemies of House Stark."
"We can agree to those terms."
"Very well, my people will draw up a contract, you are welcome to stay as long as you wish, as long as you don't cause any trouble."
"Thank you, your grace."
Three moons later, the Valyrians left the North for the journey back home. House Targaryens and House Veltigar left exactly with what they thought they would, a new place to trade their goods and a non-aggression pact. But House Belaerys made a new friend and ally with House Stark. They made better deals with them, as well as making promises to keep in touch. House Stark would grow in wealth with new trade deals with Valyria, especially House Belaerys.
2975 years AW: Fourth Andal Crusade, minimal success with the only Stark (a cousin to the king) ever killed in the Crusade. The North swore vengeance and would receive it.
2977 years AW: Second Bolton Invasion, had no success
3028 years AW: Prince Cregan "the Guildmaster" formed a great many guilds in Winterfell. The Blacksmith Union, the Farmer's Gathering, the Mercenary Guild, the Company of the Rose (A sellsword company), Magic Association, and etc to further the Northern economy.
3125 years AW: Crowned Prince Antioch "the Faith Slayer" and a few select men and a CotF, would sneak into Oldtown and into the First Sept, where he would gut the High Septon "the Rude" and leave his entrail in a new Weirdwood sapling, planted in the stairway up to the Sept. The sapling feed on the blood and magic of the First Men and a Child of the Forest, to grow faster. House Stark would make use of the first Wildfire ever created by the Alchemist Guild to blow up the entire sept. He would leave a message saying, the North remembers that your religion killed a Stark and winter came for the High Septon in retaliation. This would start saying that the North Remembers.
3208 years AW: Another building project of the North was planned by House Stark to attempt to greatly increase their infrastructure counteracting the negative effects of having such vasts and frigid lands. White Harbour and Whitehall is connected to Winterfell through the White Knife. As such House Stark begins this hundred year plan, with the construction of riverports, river transport systems, and roads.
House Stark had to first connect their greatest source of trade with Essos to their inland capital, to maintain a growth in the capital as well. After 8 years, this task was completed and the river system brings more trade to Winterfell and Wintercity due to the reduction in costs.
House Stark then contacts House Belaerys and offers a million golden wolves for their assistance in the construction of the roads system in the North. After much negotiation, House Stark and House Belaerys agrees to only work together in building the road from Winterfell to Wolf's Watch. After 6 years, a great amount of funding the wolf's road is completed.
House Stark having learnt much from the Valyrian road making begins to merge the Valyrian road designs with the Yi Tish great stone road designs to find a medium between the two. Whilst not as good as the Valyrian roads, it was certainly as good as the great stone roads and did not require dragonfire. Whitehall, Newcastle were all connected to Wolf's Road over the course of 4 years.
House Stark would then embark upon the connecting Winterfell to Castle Black. This would be the longest undertaking committed by House Stark other than the construction of the Wall. 14 years would be spent in the construction of the Black road.
However, an unforeseen problem arose from the construction of the two main roads. Banditry had greatly increased in the North, exploiting the increasing infrastructure. This lead to the foundation of the Northern standing army. A trained force of 10,000 men, were tasked to defend the North. Three Magnar Commanders were elected to command the force together. Each Magnar Commander had 3 Commanders under their command and each commander had 10 Captains under their command. The Commanders and Captains could be both smallfolk, heir of magnars, and even bastards. This standing army would grow to 20,000 men as the population of the North increased. This greatly lowered banditry in the North and also allowed smallfolk to make a little bit of money and the heirs to earn battle experience.
More Northern roads was created over the next 5000 years connecting all of the Highmagnars castles to Winterfell. However, the other roads were not built purely out of the House Stark's treasury. They would be a joint program between the two houses to connect their castles with roads. This infrastructure allowed trade to easily flow to Winterfell and Wintercity, as well as allowing the Northern armies to reach their destination faster. All of the Northern roads lead to Winterfell, creating the saying, all roads lead to Winterfell.
3323 years AW: As an answer to the newly formed and growing Order of the Maesters and their attempts at infiltrating the North and the legendary Great Library of Winterfell. House Stark, specifically Prince Eyron "the Highscholar", created their own order, the Scholarly Order. Any Northerner who was smart enough or show potential would be allowed to join the order, whether they be a commoner or a highborn. All highborns who join the order would need to give up their claims and lands.
A massive keep was built for the order by House Stark, which would later known as the Winterfell University. They would be charged with being the guardians of the Great Library of the Winterfell and tasked with discovering new knowledge and creating inventions. Prince Eyron would become the first Grandscholar in the Order with his twin Princess Lyanna joining him for the same rank.
The lowest rank was an apprentice scholar. These apprentices studied basic and general knowledge in all fields for an average of 4 years in a classroom. Should they show potential, however, they would be recruited as a direct apprentice of a Scholar, a Highscholar, or in one rare case a Greatscholar.
When they are deemed fit, they take a difficult test, testing their theoretical and practical knowledge. Should they pass, they are given the title Scholar. After earning this title, they must begin to specialize within fields. An average Scholar becomes adept around 2 and minor in another 3. They must write a modified thesis, a thesis based upon a full thesis, to become a Highscholar.
Highscholars were men that had proven their knowledge by writing an entire modified thesis, found 20 theoretical errors and mistakes within separate books, or served a town faithfully for 3 years. They serve minor lords and minor keeps.
Then there were Greatscholars, who either wrote a new original thesis, 3 modified thesis, or making a new invention which would help the North. All Greatscholars must be masters of at least four fields. They serve powerful Magnars and Highmagnars or teach classes to the Scholars and Highscholars in Winterfell University.
The highest rank was Grandscholar. A Grandscholar held the position for life or until they have become physically or mentally unable. There was a major discussion which took place, between all of the top Greatscholars and the remaining Grandscholars to decide who was worthy enough to become a Grandscholar. They can only be three Grandscholars at a time. One of the Grandscholars must serve at court in Winterfell, while the other two lead the Order. They had to be masters of at least five fields with at least two original thesis. The Grandscholar of Winterfell would become a great advisor and tutor to House Stark.
Most of the Highscholars were better than the Maester of the south. The Great Library was bigger, grander, and contained a greater quantity and quality of books as the North was leading in innovation as well as amount of discoveries.
3967 years AW: The trade between North and Valyria is almost exclusively between the North and House Belaerys, granting them great wealth and power to compensate for their lack of dragons compared to the other 40 Valyrian Great Houses, allowing them to stay in power and grow. They lead the neutral faction between the two opposing factions of the 40 Dragonlords, only focusing on growing their wealth and power.
4286 years AW: Fifth Andal Crusade, had no success and once again broke against the walls of Wolf's Watch
4394 years AW: Third Bolton Invasion, minor success in slaying House Locke and taking their castle. The combined forces of Stark, Whitestark, and Manderly forces the Bolton forces back out of the North.
The Blood Company have mastered the guerrilla warfare tactics and uses them with great efficiency against a bigger army. After their three campaigns in the North, they have begun to gain an adept knowledge on combat in a snowy terrain and due to their time in Essos they learn how to fight in both plains and hills. This experience allows them to grow into one of the biggest sellsword companies in the world.
4523 years AW: Prince Bradon "the Clockmaker" creates the first sundial to keep track of time. He ordered the building of the massive sundial in Winterfell. This leads to a greater organization and perception of time.
4869 years AW: To celebrate a friendship of 2000 years House Belaerys grants a Valyrian Greatsword Ice, an exact replica of the ancestral blade of House Stark as a token of friendship. This would make House Stark, one of the few Houses in Westeros to own a Valyrian Greatsword. With House Belaerys permission, the sword is woven with Children of the Forest's magic to make stronger like Wintersteel, Winteriron, and Celestial Bronze, creating the very first Valyrian Wintersteel.
House Stark would in turn allow any member of House Belaerys access to the Great Library of Winterfell, the only none Northern House to ever receive such a privilege. House Stark even denied House Lannister and the Order of the Maesters access even though House Lannister offered a million golden wolves in exchange. House Lannister would go on to offer that small mountain of gold to the Valyrians for the Valyrian Greatsword Brightroar.
Queen Darna "the Sea Rose" would marry Aegar Belaerys and design Galleass and the Great galleasses to continue the Northern domination of the sea. The Ironborn culture as mostly been assimilated with the Northern culture.
5023 years AW: Prince Qhorin "the Stargazer" was the first to study the field of astronomy. Creating the very first few maps of the stars, naming the brightest star, the Northern Rose. To better see the stars, he would commission a few engineers within the North to design the world's first telescope. He would gift this idea to his friend of House Greywolf as glassmaking was already their forte. Many captains would buy their own telescopes from House Greywolf earning them more money. He would then order the greatest observatory be built in the tallest mountain in the North, so House Peverall gained a wonder of man to their name and castle.
5173 years AW: Crowned Prince Jojen "the Astronomer" Stark would discover and name all of the constellations visible in the Northern Hemisphere. Such as the Giant, Direwolf, or Kraken. He would work with many of the greatest minds in the North to discover many interesting things. He would be the first to captain the Northern Caravel and sail the ocean without the guidance of the shore. His friend Magnar Belthasar Thenn would discover that the Northern Rose would always point towards the North and create the first compass in the world.
5343 years AW: Prince Brandon "the Foolish", a fourth born cousin of the King, would lead a part of the Western Navy across the Sunset Sea in hopes of discovering a new continent for the North to settle upon. He disappears with the navy, never to be seen again.
5868 years AW: Prince Garin's eldest daughter was married to the Crown Prince of the North, as House Stark's believe in blood talent, breed power and talent into the Stark bloodline, with Prince Garin being the most powerful water mage in history.
5872 years AW: The Rhoynish lost the Rhoynish Wars, left the great river Rhoyne with Queen Nymeria and her thousand ships. It is said that the war between the Valyrians and the Rhoynish was one of the greatest wars in the history of the known world. The final battle was named the Battle of Fire and Water, as the Dragonriders of Valyria and the water mages of Rhoyne faught.
The elements themselves were attacking each other. The water mages would use the Rhoyne to block and attack the dragons. It was a long hard drawn out fight, but with the might of Valyria and their storm of 100 dragons, destroyed all of Prince Garin "the Great" forces. Most of the Rhoynish fled to Dorne and married into the Martells, allowing the Martell to finally conquer all of Dorne.
Queen Nymeria would sail her 1,000 ships filled to the brim with Rhoynar to flee the Valyrian conquest, after the 500 year war. They would land in Dorne, where Queen Nymeria would seduce and marry Mors Martell. After earning a home for themselves, Queen Nymeria would burn 900 of the 1000 ships so that no Rhoynar would have the opportunity to change their minds. The Rhoynish water magic allowed for the discovery and creation of many oasis to help the Martells grow stronger. Queen Nymeria would then go on to conquer the Yronwoods one of the three Kings of Dorne. With the combined forces of the Yronwoods, Martell, and Rhoynar, House Dayne arguably once strongest Dornish House due to their friendship with House Stark, fell and bent the knee.
Dorne soon as powerful as the other kingdoms. The water mages of Rhoynar allowed oasis to be found and new settlements to be made. The Rhoynar also brought camels with them, allowing them to traverse the Dornish desert with greater ease. With these new findings and additions, Dorne would become more powerful than they were. However, a lot if not most of the water mage's knowledge was lost in the destruction of the great city-states of Rhoyne. The Valyrian Freehold made sure to destroy the city-states as much as possible to ensure such a threat never rises again. Rhoyne had killed 50 dragons in the war, which was more than the Ghiscari did in the 1000 year war. The art of the water mages would be lost by the end of the 100th year of the Rhoyish landing, as many are hunted by the Andal zealots. The great purge leads to the water mages to go into hiding or be killed off. As more and more water mages goes into hiding, less and less of the knowledge is passed on, and soon all of the water mages were lost.
The burning of the thousand fleet had assured the newly assimilated Andal culture to assimilate to the Rhoynish culture, leading to a very interesting middle ground, also limited the Dornish navy size to 150 ships. Due to the lack of wood in Dorne, most of their fleet to combat the pirates of the Stepstones were from the North.
5973 years AW: Sixth Andal Crusade happen simultaneously with the Fourth Bolton Invasion, both had some success, as the boy King Jojen was not a skilled military commander, especially at the age of 8. However, after appointing Highmagnar Umber as his general and commander of his forces, they are repelled.
6013 years AW: Worried about the growing strength of the Valyrians and lack of enemies they have to fight, Prince Brandon "the Explorer" and Princess Lyrra "the Sea Wolf" set off on a quest to Chroyane. They would sneak 3 dozen Northern ships up through Sarhoy to the greatest Rhoynish city, with the help of House Belaerys. Chroyane is said to be the least destroyed, as the last Rhoynish Prince Garin "the Great" whilst in his golden cage being mocked by 20 dragonlord conquerors, at night called upon Mother Rhoyne to drag all 20 dragons and dragonlords down into the river drowning them. It is said that Prince Garin angered by his failure and causing the death of a quarter million soldiers, then raised the fogs which hid Chroyane from the Valyrian dragons to protect his home. The Valyrians scared to meet the same faith as the 20 dragonlords decided to just abandon Chroyane. It is said that Mother Rhoyne created Greyscales to punish the Valyrians, as the disease became wide spread as the armies of the Valyrians went back home. The Valyrians solved the problem by burning and sacrificing all of the infected men.
The 3 dozen ships docked at the surprisingly well preserved city. Chroyane, nicknamed the festival city, was once the richest and most splendid of the cities along the Rhoyne. It contained the colossal Palace of Love, a magnificent fastness. The crew see graceful buttresses, delicate arches, fluted columns, terraces and bowers. The palace's towers and fallen stones are covered in thick, grey moss and black vines. It was roughly the same size as Winterfell but a hundred times more beautiful.
They would fight more than a hundred maddened Stonemen. The Northerners wearing long clothing and could avoid having skin to skin contact with them and through the use of spears and shields walls, were able to get through to the Palace of Love.
It was there they would find the throne room, where the skeletal figure, presumed to be Prince Garin sat. Prince Garin recorded his life in a journal which would be found next to his body. The book and crown would be taken with the two Stark siblings. They would go on to raid the great library of the Palace of Love. Chroyane being next to river Rhoyne was always very wet. To compensate for this the Rhoynish watermages would ward the library to keep it dry. This meant the books were relatively well kept, with most of the books being in good conditions. Due to the age of the wards however, as soon as they stepped through the doors, the ward collapsed. Meaning the Palace of Love would soon face greater decay and collapse. All of the gold, books, and other valuable items were looted. One of the most important finds was the book on Greyscale. The book detailed many methods to avoid Greyscale, such as burning all clothing contaminated by Greyscale, as it could carry the disease, using fire to burn prevent more spreading, and the use of water magic to cut the Greyscale off of the skin. Water magic works the best as the water is constantly changing, however, a similar process could be completed with knives, as long as the knives are constantly cleaned.
A dozen of sketches and paintings were drawn of Chroyane, to capture the beautiful city before it fell into ruin.
Prince Brandon, after reading about the traditional burial methods of the Rhoynish, put Prince Garin's body wrapped in a blanket was put on a boat and pushed out into the Rhoyne. The boat with man made holes, causing it to slowly sink into the river, allowing Prince Garin to finally find rest with Mother Rhoyne.
The two siblings would return to the North as heroes, having brought great wealth and knowledge to Winterfell. The North would immediately study the notes of the Rhoynish Warmasters and would be disappointed to find their fighting tactics mostly revolved around the legendary water mages of Rhoyne. However, the history and culture of Rhoyne was preserved in the North and Dorne.
House Stark after not finding any helpful tactics from the Rhoynish, would double their efforts to find the legendary chronicles of Hizdahr zo Sarqu using the Kingsman. He was a commander of the Old Empire of Ghis, who in the Fifth Ghiscari War was the only commander able to kill four dragons.
House Lannister, House Gardener, and House Arryn would all launch their own expeditions. House Gardener chose to visit Sarhoy, as it was the safest. However, Sarhoy was found to be in complete ruins after the Valyrians destroyed it. Disappointed, they would launch a second expedition to Ny Sar. Whilst they found slightly more success there, most of the valuable goods from Ny Sar was taken to Dorne. House Arryn visit Ar Noy. Whilst parts of its famous green marble walls were still standing, there was not much goods to be found as the dragon flames destroyed the city and palace. Ghoyan and Drohe would be visited by House Lannister, the city also in ruins but many of its canal bridges were still standing. This allowed House Lannister to find some information of Rhoyne and its beautiful architecture. These expeditions would bring back a small sample of Greyscales, which is why people in Westeros could get the disease, even though it is extremely rare.
6139 years AW: King Karlon "the Patron" would fund many of the great architectural buildings and artworks. Many parts of Queens Cassana's mathematics would be figured out during this period, leading to the extensive usage of the Stark Theorem.
The architecture of the Rhoynar, North, and Valyria would find a very beautiful mixture within Winterfell creating a new architectural style. Winterfell would receive many of the classic Rhoynish architecture of graceful buttresses, delicate arches, fluted columns, terraces and bowers. They received the tall circular architure of the Valyrians in combination of the sharp slanted roofs to allow no snow build up, the gargoyles watchers, grey granite, and hundred of fluttering banners of House Stark, from the Northern architecture.
Many Direwolves and Stark Kings statues popped up around Winterfell. The first amphitheatre based upon Rhoynish architecture was built to hold plays, magicians acts, animal shows, musical artists and many others. The Street of the Great Kings were created to depict the best Kings of the North through very realistic sculptures. It lead straight to the Great Gate, which connected to the Black road and Wolfsroad. The sculpture were famous for looking unbelievably real.
The very inner walls of Winterfell received a very artistic upgrade that by no means affected the strength and integrity of the walls. No castle in Westeros could compare to Winterfell's beauty and strength. Music and art would flourish in the North, leading to Wintercity and Winterfell to be the most beautiful place in the world, comparable only to the city Valyria. Musical devices were created like the drum, bagpipe, and harp. The Citadel not willing to be outdone by the North again, creates the lute.
Winterfell would become one of the only examples of Northern extravagance. However, due to its importance, history, and House Stark's great economic strategies no Northerners had any complaints.
6214 years AW: Since King Antioch "the Faith Slayer", Oldtown would not house the High Septon for 3000 years. They were finally brought back after House Hightower spent thousands of gold wolves in building the Starry Sept. House Hightower and other Reach Houses spent 2000 years to cut down all of the Weirwood trees, which kept mysteriously popping up.
6423 years AW: King Cregan Stark II formed the Order of the Vexator. They were spear and knife wielding fighters. Each member was extremely skilled, but their main strength was their horses. King Cregon a group of his men to kill a small Khalasar and bring their horses. The best of the best were bred to be the fastest and have the strongest endurance. House Ryswell who had a history of horse breeding exclusively bred horses for this order. Order of the Vexator's horses were bred to focused on speed and endurance instead of strength and size. They were the special cavalry unit that would be sent in to harass army and disappear by the time the main fighting force was to attack. They were meant to slow down an attacking army. They were trained to fight all types of land fighters from knights to cavalry, to normal foot soldiers.
6692 years AW: King Jon "the Mechanic" would crack a part of Cassana's notes and design the world's first crossbows and scorpions. The walls of Winterfell and Wolf's Watch were lined with these warmachines in the case of an aerial or siege weapon attack. A couple attacks from scorpions blasts would have siege weapons breaking down, unlike the wave of arrows that were required. All other major castles would soon be lined with scorpions earning House Stark a great deal of money.
6808 years AW: The seventh and final Andal Crusade happened, with no success. They were once again repelled by the great walls of Wolf's Watch. With the addition of the scorpions and other war machines and the 4 Andal Crusade broken by Wolf's Watch, Wolf's Watch has become officially as impossible to take as the Bloody Gate of the Vale. The Andal Crusades allowed the North to observe all of the weaknesses within its defences and completely correct all of them.
7051 years AW: House Stark celebrates their 7000 year rule over the dominion of the North. House Stark is considered to be nearly godly figures in the North due to their extremely long rule and brilliant legendary members. Many of the roads are completed by this time, connecting all High Magnar castles and towns to Winterfell. There are three major cities in the North. Wintercity, with a population of 450,000 people is the biggest city in the North. White Harbour follows with a population of 250,000 people, then Guardcity with a population of 180,000 people. Whitetown, Greytown, Pyke fall just below the city population of 50,000 and has 45,000, 40,000, and 35,000 respectively. The North has a population of 7 million men, 35 thousand giants, and 25 thousand Children of the Forest. Without the influx of giants and the First Men tribes beyond the Wall, the North would have most likely never grown beyond 4 million men.
(A/N: This numbers will of course change. By the time of the TV shows, the North will have a population of 8 million. This number is based upon a website I read that estimated the cannon populations to be 1.5 million for the Crownlands, 4 million for the North, 4 million for the Riverlands, 4 million for the Vale of Arryn, 5.5 million for the Westerlands, 1.5 million for the Iron Islands, 2.5 million for the Stormlands, 3 million for Dorne, and 12 million for the Reach. Since in this story, the Iron Island and Beyond the Wall population should be added to the North's pop, you have at least 6 million people. Considering growth should also be bigger with a bigger pop, I think my estimation is okay. Also in my personal opinion 2.5 seems a little small for the Stormlands so I am going to raise that to be 3.5.)
7123 years AW: House Stark, Queen Cayra "the Liberator" would aid the escape of three ships filled with escaped slaves. They would guide them North along Essos towards a hidden cluster of islands, a distant lagoon surrounded by pine-clad slopes, where the thick fog would help conceal the refugees from passing dragonriders. It was just such a place that the refugees ultimately arrived, and their city began to expand across the many islands and mudflats that dotted the lagoon. House Belaerys finding about this endeavor decided to aid House Stark and trust their judgement, helping the Braavosi escape the Valyrian grasp and knowledge by providing them with the Valyrian patrol information. The Starks would send giants and men to help build a grand city, with many bridges connecting the hundred islands to another. Braavos would be made up of Ghiscari, Summer Islander, Northerner, Rhoynish, Andal, and Valyrian architecture.
7324 years AW: The North is the only country that knew of the existence and location of Braavos and so they were their sole trading partner. The North worked hard to make sure Braavos survived and thrived. A group of 10 men and women would come to House Stark to form the Iron Bank. House Stark gave them blessing to use their currency of the Gold Wolf, Silver, and Copper giant. This would spread the influence of their currency all over the world when the Iron Bank grew in prominence. As a show of good fate, House Stark would deposit 1 million Gold Wolves for the Iron Bank to invest.